Know more about Hachiko, the world’s most loyal dog, turning 100 this year

Hachiko, a cream-white Akita, was born on November 10, 1923, at a farm in Odate, Akita Prefecture, Japan. A year later, he was adopted by Hidesaburo Ueno, a professor in the agriculture department at the Tokyo Imperial University, who took him to live in Shibuya, Tokyo.

Ueno, who would commute daily to work, would be greeted by Hachiko at the end of each day at the nearby Shibuya station. This endearing daily routine continued until May 21, 1925, when Ueno did not return as he suffered a cerebral haemorrhage while he was giving a lecture to his class. He died without ever returning to the train station where his pet dog eagerly waited for him.

“While people were attending the wake, Hachi smelled Dr Ueno from the house and went inside the living room. He crawled under the coffin and refused to move,” Hachiko’s biographer, Prof Mayumi Itoh, was quoted as saying by BBC.

Hachiko waited for his master for over 9 years (Source: Wikimedia Commons)

Hachiko spent the next few months with different families outside Shibuya but, in 1925, he started living with Ueno’s gardener Kikusaburo Kobayashi. He soon resumed his daily commute to the station. Each day, for the next 9 years, 9 months and 15 days, Hachiko continued to wait for Ueno at the exact time when the train was set to arrive at the attention.

“In the evening, Hachi stood on four legs at the ticket gate and looked at each passenger as if he were looking for someone,” Prof Itoh added. While initially, people Hachiko saw him as a nuisance, he gained fame after the Japanese daily Tokyo Asahi Shimbun featured Hachiko in 1932.

People soon started to bring him food and treats to help nourish him during his long wait. The station also received donations for Hachiko each day and visitors came from far and wide to see him.

According to BBC, the 100-year-old dog has since been memorialised in books, movies, poems etc. In 1934, Hachiko’s bronze statue was sculpted by Teru Ando at Shibuya Station which was recycled for the war effort during World War II. In 1948, the second statue in honour was erected which still stands there and is a popular meeting point at the station.

Eventually, Hachiko passed away on March 8, 1935, at the age of 11 and his death was covered by many leading publications. Thousands of people visited his statue the following day and at his funeral, Buddhist monks offered prayers to him. Every year on April 8, a memorial service for Hachiko is held outside Shibuya Station.

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